IAV 2024: Hungary arms its Lynx IFVs with Hero loitering munitions

Rheinmetall officially opened its new factory in Zalaegerszeg, western Hungary, on 18 August 2023, which is producing the Lynx IFV for the HDF. (Rheinmetall)

Hungary will arm its Lynx infantry fighting vehicles (IFVs) with Hero loitering munitions, Janes learnt at Defence iQ's International Armoured Vehicles (IAV) 2024 conference being held in London from 22 to 25 January. This is in addition to other ammunition for the vehicles and the 163 Lynx IFVs being produced in Hungary.

Hungary ordered Hero loitering munitions from Rheinmetall and UVision in July 2023, with deliveries scheduled to begin in 2024 and to be completed in 2025.

The German company produces and markets Hero in Europe under a strategic co-operation agreement with UVision Air Ltd. Rheinmetall and UVision signed a strategic partnership agreement on the Israeli company's Hero loitering munition in October 2021.

The press release announcing the Hungarian loitering munition order at the time included an image of Hero-30, but neither Rheinmetall nor the Hungarian Defence Forces (HDF) revealed if that is the version Hungary ordered or how many would be delivered.

Hero-30 is launched pneumatically from a single container or multicontainer and carries a 0.5 kg warhead for use against personnel and vehicles.

Rheinmetall is building the first 46 Lynx IFVs and command-and-control vehicles in Germany. Hungary received its first Lynx, an IFV, for the HDF at Petőfi Sándor Barracks in Budapest on 15 October 2022. In addition to the IFV version, Hungary has ordered command post, reconnaissance, joint fires observer, mortar carrier, armoured ambulance, and driver training variants of the Lynx.